The ice cold sneezers who once had brought me to my knees were warbling outside. A gust ripped my coat, and its chill had a way of sticking to the ribs. A gull glided by with a big red berry in his beak. He was smiling. Of course he was. That was the best moment of his life.

There’s a corner three blocks down and it’s the nicest corner I’ve ever seen but it’s not enough. The spare booze store, the Subway, the exclusive club that utilizes red velvet ropes. Mortar and plaster and stardust and gold. All that is here. But it’s not enough.